


Ghost Town Trouble

by alex_kade



Category: By Any Means (TV), Die Hard (Movies), Italian Job (2003), James Bond (Craig movies), Mission: Impossible (Movies), National Treasure (Movies), Swordfish (2001), The Losers (2010), The Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Hackers, Gen, Hacking, Hurt/Comfort, and probably violence, because we know i'm going to damage everyone, but i don't want to list them all because it's too many, let our hacker boys reign supreme!, let the great hackerfest of 2020 begin!, rated for language, seriously, the other characters are involved too, they aren't the focus anyway, this is just me pulling all my fav hackers and tossing them together into a mess, this one is mostly for our fav sidekicks, why am I doing this to myself
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:56:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25493476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alex_kade/pseuds/alex_kade
Summary: Several of the world's top hackers are called to a small town for varying reasons, but once they arrive they quickly realize none of them are there for the reasons they believed.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 11





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This whole fic is going to be one giant catastrophe, I'm sure, lol. Look at my cast! 
> 
> Note that I'm positive not everyone is going to be familiar with all the characters and fandoms I'm writing in, but as I've mostly plucked just one character out of his fandom home and dropped him in the middle of nowhere with everyone else, you don't really need to go looking up the source material to enjoy this. Most of these characters don't know each other so I'll fill in what you need to know about each one as they get introduced to one another in story (I'll most likely have Jensen and Riley already know each other because I've written some cute friend fics about them already, but this will fall outside my Q00l universe in which Riley and Q are dating each other). 
> 
> For those who want to know more about each hacker, most of them are pretty easy to find via their movies:
> 
> *Riley Poole is from the National Treasure films  
> *Matt Farrell is from Live Free or Die Hard  
> *Benji Dunn is from the Mission:Impossible films  
> *TomTom from By Any Means is a little more difficult as the show is an older BBC series that literally only lasted six episodes, but I love Andrew Lee Potts's little smartass hacker so I had to include him. You can still find those episodes on Dailymotion if you're curious.  
> *Q is from the James Bond franchise (I'm using the Q from the last several Craig movies as portrayed by Ben Whishaw)  
> *This particular version of JD is actually fanon. His character originally appeared in the old TV show _The Magnificent Seven_ which was a very good Western series way back in the day, but fans took the characters from the show and created an AU where the seven are on an ATF team in modern day Denver. If you're curious about that, just search the M7 fanfics for the many many ATF stories. They're just as popular as the original Western canon fics are, so they're easy to spot.  
> *Jensen is from The Losers film and comics  
> *Lyle (aka Napster) is from The Italian Job film (the remake, not the original)  
> *Stanley and my villains are from Swordfish

_ Washington D.C. _

"I told you, it's just for the weekend," Riley reiterated over the phone as he packed his clothes into a suitcase. "I'm sure the great Benjamin Gates can handle a couple days without me...No, I was not being sarcastic. I was pretending that I was important for once....Thank you, Ben, that's so nice...Yes, now I'm being sarcastic...Ouch. Keep that up and I won't email you the instructions for any of your presentations...Relax, that was a joke. I'll do it as soon as I'm done packing, and if you don't understand something, you can always just call me. It's not like I'm dropping off the face of the planet. Unless you count Sha--ni--ko, Oregon as dropping off the planet, which might actually be the case. This place has a population of like forty."

He paused and rolled his eyes at the ceiling. "Ben. This is the twenty-first century, and we're hackers. We can get cell signal and internet pretty much anywhere. In fact, that's probably part of some test or something... _ No _ , not for me. They've got me playing mentor to a newer recruit up in New Jersey...I know. Scary, right? The sidekick gets his own sidekick...Nope, I have no idea what his name is. They're supposed to be sending me his profile any min-"

A ping went off on Riley's computer and he skipped across the room, nearly tripping over a pair of sneakers in his haste to get to it. A mere second later, his eyes were flying across the screen until they reached the information he was seeking, then they grew wide with recognition.

"Huh," he muttered in surprise and a little confusion, forgetting for a moment that his phone was still pressed to his ear until the voice on the other end questioned his odd reaction. "It’s kind of weird. My sidekick's not exactly sidekick material. The geniuses at the FBI assigned me to Matt Farrell. This isn’t a rookie hacker. He's like his own superhero."

_ New York _

"Matt," Lucy said sternly. "Calm down. You're going to give yourself an asthma attack."

"Right. Calming." Matt forced himself to sit down on the couch, pressing his hands tightly between his knees for about half a second before he got up and started pacing again. "Ya know, I think it might be too late for that. My chest is tightening up a little, but not really in an 'I'm going to die' asthma attack sort of way. It's more of the 'I'm excited, but nervous, but more excited than nervous' can't breathe type of way, if that makes any sense."

Folding her arms over her chest, she leaned against the doorway that divided his kitchen from the living room. "Sometimes I wonder if I dreamt up the whole 'you helping to save the nation' thing."

"Yeah, you've said that before. A lot, actually. You know, that's not really good for my self-esteem, and you keep telling me I need to work on that, so..."

"You  _ do." _ She strolled over to him and gripped both his arms, guiding him back to the couch so she could force him to sit back down. "And right now would be a good time to start. This guy asked for you specifically, right? That means he already thinks you're up to the task. It  _ can't _ be worse than running around with my dad for a couple days."

"No," Matt admitted, sucking in a deep breath. He glanced up at her through bangs that were constantly falling over his eyes, the uncertainty clear in them. "It's just...I mean, I know I proved myself to the FBI and everything, and my job is great, and people respect me now, and I got this  _ ridiculous _ apartment for doing exactly what I used to do except now it's like a real career instead of criminal activity, but this is  _ bigger _ than that. This is, like,  _ international _ bigger. This guy, the guy who wanted me specifically guy, he's like a ghost. I can't find out anything about him. He's better than me and Warlock combined. Probably. I mean, he  _ has _ to be, right? He works for the IMF."

"Maybe," Lucy shrugged, "but then again, he does have the name of a little, shaggy dog. How can anyone named Benji really be that much better than you?"

_ San Francisco _

Benji and Brandt leaned over the pier's railing, laughing as they watched the sea lions knocking one another off their platforms.

"You sure this thing's legit?" Brandt asked once their laughter died down.

"What thing?" Benji asked, then shook his head. "Oh, you mean the Oregon thing. Yeah, it's just a small assignment, helping someone out from back home on his case. Poor kid's never been to the states before and he gets stuck seeing nothing but a small town and dirt. Do you think I should maybe take him somewhere after? Portland or somewhere a little more exciting?"

"I think you should probably meet him first before making plans to drag him all over the state," Brandt smirked.

Benji gave his friend an understanding nod. "Right. Yes. Some of my types — the technical types — are very awkward. Socially, I mean. He might not want to go anywhere. Or he might talk too much. He could talk my bloody ear off and drive me completely up a wall."

Brandt huffed out a light laugh. "Can't imagine what  _ that's _ like."

"I do  _ not _ talk too much. Not in comparison, anyway. You guys got lucky with me. You have  _ no _ idea how obnoxious my types can be."

"Hacker types or English types?" Brandt questioned, unable to help himself and thoroughly amused by Benji's affronted look. "Just a joke, Benji. What's this kid's name, anyway?"

The techie pouted for a second before he turned his attention back to the sea lions. "Thomas Tomkins. He works for a side department of the London PD, all very hush-hush. A little like us, I suppose, which means I get to be like a big brother for a weekend. To be honest, I can't wait."

_ London _

Charlie picked up another card from the stack and added it to his hand. "Anyone have any plans this weekend?" he asked, his utterly bored face mirroring that of his teammates.

"As sad as this is," Jess remarked, scooping up a handful of peanuts and popping them in her mouth, "what we're doing right now  _ is _ sort of the plan for the weekend."

"Maybe we'll get a case," Quinn shrugged, and tossed a poker chip into the pile. "Call. Two pair."

Both Jess and Charlie sighed at their loss, but TomTom casually laid out his hand. "Four lovely ladies," he commented, "and I  _ do _ have a case this weekend. In the States. Looks like the rest of you will have to figure out how to lose to each other instead of losing to me for once."

Everyone stopped and stared at him for a moment before Quinn waved his hands in the air. "Wait, wait, wait. You have a case?"

"Mm-hmm."

Jess arched her eyebrow up skeptically. "By yourself?"

"I  _ am _ capable of handling things on my own, you know," TomTom replied, affronted.

"In the States," Charlie finished. "And who, exactly, put you on this case?"

" _ That's _ top secret. Super top secret." The computer whiz smiled and lowered his voice despite the fact it was only them in the building. "Spy stuff, top secret. This pans out and I could wind up becoming an actual secret agent. I know you’ll miss me if that happens, so I’ll tell you what. I can bring you back some souvenirs if you want. One of those little magnets? Or, if you play nice, I can maybe spring for a shot glass."

Quinn smirked and sat back in his chair. "Our TomTom going on a secret mission to the states under orders of, what, probably MI6 then? Who would've thought?"

_ London -  _ _ Vauxhall _

“I’m not exactly thrilled about this either, Bond, but orders are orders.” Q huffed as he closed up his laptop for the day in preparation to head home. He had to pack for the short notice trip that he dreadfully did not want to take.

Bond frowned as he followed the Quartermaster out of his office. “Yes, I understand that, Q. What I don’t follow is why they’re physically sending you over there. Can’t you help track their target from here?”

Sighing, Q shook his head. “They’re Americans, Bond. You know their various branches of law enforcement squabble over control even more than ours do.”

“They want you there in person so they can puppet you around as they please.” 007 did  _ not _ look pleased about that one bit. He didn’t take kindly to other people pushing around his beloved Quartermaster. “And M was alright with this? Do you happen to know why?”

They got to the car where Q pinched the bridge of his nose as he slid into the passenger seat. “Because the man apparently wreaking havoc across the States is one who got away from us. I’m there to save face as much as anything else,” he finally admitted outright, hating to confess to a blunder that he was now being forced to travel halfway around the world to fix. “If it makes you feel better, I’ll be paired up with a one John Dunne from a Denver ATF branch office. I’m told he and his team are quite respectable.”

The agent raised a brow at this news as well. “Denver. That’s in Colorado, isn’t it? Aren’t you off to Oregon?”

“Yes, well, it seems this criminal slipped through more fingers than ours. Team 7 has their own bone to pick with him. Mr. Dunne is to meet me in Oregon where the man was last spotted.”

“I still don’t like it, Q.”

“Neither do I, James. Neither do I.”

_ Denver _

“Can’t believe I got picked for such a big case!” 

The others on Team Seven watched their youngest scuttle excitedly around the office, packing away everything he needed for the weekend. Buck couldn’t help but chuckle, ducking out of the way as a power cord hanging down from the kid’s arms nearly smacked him in the face as he passed by.

“Proud of you, kid. Your first big solo case. You think you can manage it without us?”

Chris, Team 7’s leader, watched from where he was leaning in the doorway. He’d been the one to deliver the news to their team’s computer expert only moments before. “He’ll be fine, Buck.”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine, Buck.” Where normally the youngest member of their team would be a little heated over the overprotectiveness of his roommate, he was too thrilled today to be anything but happy. The case was a pretty top secret military thing, something about tracking down a presumed dead special ops soldier gone rogue, and there was a lead in Oregon. Considering the soldier was said to be one of the best hackers in the world, JD was being sent in to consult on the case. Being an ace hacker himself with a name building of his own, it was thought maybe he could help out.

The only one who didn’t seem overly enthused by their young agent’s big break was Ezra, the team’s undercover man. “Why Shaniko?” he asked suddenly, his thumb gliding thoughtfully across his bottom lip. “Not that I am claiming to be an expert in your field in any way, Mr. Dunne, but doesn’t a small town such as this seem to be a bit  _ out _ of the field? Or perhaps too far into a field, considering that and rock appear to be all that exist in the area.”

“What’re you on about, Ezra?” Josiah, the team’s profiler asked with a fond grin.

“It’s a historical ghost town,” Standish clarified. “Anyone new to the area is going to stand out like a sore thumb, particularly anyone who would be as reliant on technology as our young Mr. Dunne is. I understand the idea of trying to go off the grid, but doing so in a town of less than forty people? He’d have to know that those people would eventually talk.”

JD cut back in before anyone else could. “That’s just it, Ezra. He’s not actually  _ in _ Shaniko but people did talk and it seems like he’s passed through a couple times. They think, anyway. Coming in for supplies. He might still be out in the desert somewhere being off the grid, just like you said. A few of us are getting called in to station ourselves in town and try to get some readings, sweep the outlying area for signals and stuff. It could all be a bust, but local law seems to think it’s legit, so they gotta send people to check it out anyway.”

Ezra nodded, his eyes still scanning over the photos of the tiny town he’d Googled at his desk. He supposed it could be the real deal, what with the man being ex-Army and all. A desert wouldn’t bother him too much. “Well then, best of luck to you, JD,” he smiled, despite the fact that something in his gut was telling him this was off. He’d talk to the others about it later. One thing Ezra had learned over his years as an undercover agent was to never ignore his gut.

_ Palm Beach _

"We're still fugitives, Jensen," Clay pointed out unnecessarily.

The tech shrugged one shoulder, looking completely relaxed as he slouched back in the lawn chair on the roof of the apartment complex they were currently holed up in.

"Technically, we're still dead. No one’s actually looking for us. But considering this guy’s wanted by the law too, I’m pretty sure he’s not going to tip us off to anyone. Especially not in Shaniko. It’s about as dead zone as it can get. It'll be fine."

Pooch strolled onto the roof with a dinner plate in hand and grabbed the second chair that Jensen was using as a footrest, ignoring Jake's short whine of protest.

"You go to jail, I'm not busting you out," he said, and motioned his chicken leg at Cougar who had appeared up the ladder after him. "He might if you pay him enough, but not me. No way. I'm not getting tangled up in anything with anyone wanted by more than one government."

“I’m wanted by more than one government,” Aisha smirked as she came up last and dropped a file into Pooch's lap. "And I don’t know. This guy seems pretty impressive to me. If he was really involved in this many heists and still no one knows what his face looks like, he could be useful."

Jensen smiled triumphantly. "See? Exactly. I mean look at that Los Angeles job. Sure, the traffic cam trick is pretty standard, but they made a whole armored truck disappear right into the street! That was  _ way _ better than our helicopter lift thing!"

"I take offense to that. I flew that chopper like a pro.” Pooch frowned as he opened up the folder. "Napster? Wasn’t that the music thing that fell apart?”

Jensen laughed. “Yeah, and then like a million people started using the name as their online signature. It’s kind of genius that this guy did too, makes him harder to track down.”

“Sort of like being named John Smith?”

“More like James Smith,” the hacker countered. “James Smith is more popular than John Smith by a few hundred people.”

Aisha rolled her eyes. “Why do you know so much weird shit?”

“You collect human ears, I collect facts. We all have our thing.”

Clay chuckled at that and turned the subject back to something more relevant. “And it’s just a trade, you said? You help him with his thing, he helps us with ours?”

“Yep. I checked it all out, Clay. I can’t find any holes in anything. It’s a hacker code thing. We have each other’s backs. And if anything goes wrong, I’ll contact you. That simple.”

The Colonel tapped his chin, looking over the files again before he finally nodded. It could be good to have another genius to bounce ideas off of, someone who could pull off big jobs in heavily populated areas a little more discreetly than an overzealous group of military operatives who’d been trained to mostly work in war zones or jungles. If they wanted to keep going after Max in a way that would draw less attention to themselves, maybe someone in touch with a group of essentially cat burglars was exactly what they needed. 

“Nothing’s ever ‘that simple’ with us, you know that,” he warned, but still, he gave the hacker a small nod. “Just be careful out there.”

"When am I ever not?" Jensen smirked. No one returned the smile.

_ Seattle _

“No, I’m serious, Charlie!” Lyle argued into the phone, then tilted his head up to the ceiling in frustration. “Why does nobody ever listen to me? It’s not  _ illegal _ this time, this is like a legit thing. The guy is— No, but it’s not— Ahhhh! Nevermind! I’ll do it myself!”

He hung up and tossed his cell across the couch. Why did everyone think he was trying to pull them in for another heist? They were done with all that, he knew it as much as everyone else did! They all had plenty of money leftover from the gold bars and everything, it wasn’t really about that. The fact was, Lyle was  _ bored. _ And he wasn’t even like the big adventure guy! If he was going out of his mind, he was sure the rest of the guys must be too. Right? Or was he really just a freak?

Okay, he was a total freak, everybody knew that, but so were they! That’s why they made such a good team! But it didn’t mean everything they did had to be illegal. Stella, for example! She broke into safes as her actual job! For the  _ law _ . They could steal stuff in a legal way! He had a perfect in for it too, but because he was just Lyle the computer guy nobody wanted to listen to him. 

Days like this made him miss John. Sure everyone was nice to Lyle, and they respected his skills, but when it came to the big ideas? That was Charlie stuff now, out of his league and over his head apparently. John, though, he always encouraged everyone else to share their ideas, even if most of the time they might get turned down. Nicely though. John had a way of turning ideas down nicely. It wasn’t like this where people wouldn’t even let him talk.

He really did have a great plan this time though. Treasure hunting! Except that’s exactly where he lost everyone else on the team. But this guy, the Riley Poole guy from the book, had actually reached out to him for help, and sure he worked for the FBI now as a consultant or whatever, but this wasn’t about the heists or anything. No one knew Lyle was involved in any of that. They just knew he was the computer genius behind the Napster software. And Riley was looking for more computer geniuses.

That would be funny in itself though, Lyle though, if he got scooped up to work for the FBI when he was sort of a wanted criminal. Oh the irony. But more than that it would give him the perfect opportunity to talk to Riley about the whole treasure hunting thing. It was breaking and entering and stealing, but  _ legally _ . And it seemed  _ fun!  _ Lyle could totally do that for a living! 

His team would like it too, he was sure of it, once he was able to get himself on the inside. All he needed to do was head out to Oregon to pass some sort of remote hacker test—easy—and he could be in! He’d show everybody then, and then they’d be  _ begging _ him to let them in on the adventures. Yeah, he would show them. Easy as pie.

_ Ten miles outside of Shaniko, Oregon _

“We’ve got confirmation, sir.”

“All of them?”

“All eight. They should be here tomorrow.”

“Perfect. I want to know the second they get into town.”

The man sat back with a sigh as he picked up an old photo of a father and his daughter caught on a security cam a few years ago. “All but the one who got away. Too bad, Stanley. You really were the best.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys make their way to Shaniko with a few chance meetings along the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just curious which of the fandoms are drawing people in. Let me know in a comment! (If you're here for TomTom I'm giving you a digital hug).

Lyle made the trip down from Seattle on his bike, proud to say that he was much more skilled on the thing than he’d been that first time he’d met up with the crew before the LA heist. He couldn’t do any daredevil stunts or anything like that (he bet with an almost sneer that Handsome Rob could, that beautiful bastard), but he could definitely ride it for miles on end now with bags packed for the weekend and everything without throwing off his balance. He was hoping it would impress the treasure hunter guy at least a little bit; he’d looked Riley up and nodded approvingly at pictures of the man’s cherry red Spider convertible. The man had good taste in cars at least. 

Sadly it was a car he wouldn’t get to see since the other hacker was flying in from D.C., which was a shame considering there wasn’t really _anything_ to see in Shaniko. If he turned his head he could literally see the entirety of the ‘town’ from one end of the street to the other, most of it consisting of little historical buildings left there to attract tourists. It looked like something straight off a frontier movie set, but the big hotel looked kind of nice at least. Very Pollyanna, he thought, all brick with a nice balcony bending all the way around the corner building’s second floor. Seeing no one else but the occasional tourist milling around, he decided to go ahead and get himself checked in, maybe see what kind of food was offered in a place like this. He hoped they’d have good barbeque. What sort of frontier ghost town wouldn’t have good barbeque?

“Excuse me!” he called out once he stepped inside and noted there wasn’t anybody standing at the long, wooden desk, and no little bell he could ping obnoxiously either. “Can I check in please?”

A moment later he smiled part brightly and part somewhat shyly as a gorgeous woman stepped out from a back room, all lean angles and dark skin and a pixie cut that was styled to look like maybe she’d just rolled out of bed but in a sexy kind of way? Lyle’s mind blanked momentarily as he stared like a shameless idiot.

“Sorry about that,” she smirked back with an accent that held just a touch of country charm that grabbed at the hacker’s heart even more. He had to let out a slow breath before he passed out from holding it. “We get a lot of visitors but most of them are folks just passing through. Not too many staying the night these days. Do you have a reservation, sir, or are we the flying by the seat of our pants type?”

Lyle stumbled for a moment before nodding dumbly. “Pants! Definitely flying the pants type. I mean, usually I am anyway. I have a motorcycle!” He pointed over his shoulder out the door, forgetting the bike couldn’t actually be seen from that angle but it got the point across anyway. “But I’m supposed to be meeting someone here this weekend, so this time, not so much the...flying of pants.” God, he ended that so lamely. Trying to recover, he tapped his finger on the ledger book laying open on the desk. “Uh, Lyle. Or it might be under The Napster. That’s like my codename.”

The hot girl grinned wider as she looked through her book. “Codename, huh? Are you like a spy or something?”

“Something like that.” He leaned on the counter too, trying to play this off with more confidence. Handsome Rob said the key to women was confidence. Sell the part. He could do this just as well as the Brit could, and he wouldn’t even need all those big muscles and slick accent and shiny bald head. 

She checked his name off and turned to grab a real key off a hook— _god_ , this place was old fashioned!—before turning that heart-melting smile back on him. “We don’t get too many spy types around here. I hope it isn’t too boring for you. Your room’s on the second floor just to the right of the stairs, and if you need anything, you just call down and I’ll get you set up with anything you need.”

The wink she tossed him was almost his undoing, but he straightened and managed to wink right back without making a fool of himself. “I’ll do that. Thank you, Miss…?”

“Ginger,” she replied smoothly with a nod of her head. “Hope you enjoy your weekend with us, Mr. Napster.”

He beamed at that as he grabbed up his key and bags to shuttle them upstairs. Flirting with a smoking hot girl named Ginger. Rob would be super proud. 

~~~~~~~

“I’m telling you, Buck, you need to come up here! You’d love it!”

When JD arrived, unlike Lyle, he took one glance at the small frontier town and almost instantly fell in love. He’d driven a rental car in from the airport and rushed out like one of the excited tourists to take pictures instead of checking in at the hotel. He was sending said photos over to Buck back in Denver as he was talking to him. 

“Hell, I just got here!” he protested loudly a second later into the phone. “I don’t know what the women look like yet. Why’s that all you ever think about? I should be sending these pictures to Chris or Vin instead, they’d appreciate ‘em.”

The two roommates bantered over the phone for a little longer like they often did before JD finally hung up and began to make his way back to the car to get his things. He’d have to do the full historical tour later, but he was supposed to be meeting up with the people he was assigned to work with soon in the cafe attached to the hotel. They were supposed to brief him more on this Jensen guy, who he’d only just been given the full name of on his flight over. From everything he could see, the soldier was supposed to be very dead, but he wasn’t so young and naive to think that meant it was true. Team 7 had seen a case or two of faked deaths, so he was prepared to not be surprised if they found the guy strolling around healthy as could be in the desert somewhere.

Checking his watch, he decided to bypass check-in just yet and headed straight into the cafe. He was starving and figured he could eat something before his party arrived and maybe just catch dessert with them if they wanted anything. Discovering this wasn’t the type of place where he had to wait to be seated, he found himself a warm little booth by the window and greeted the waitress with a smile. She looked nice enough, but was definitely not Buck’s type, not unless he wanted someone who could be his aunt or something. JD thought she was great though, really friendly and made him feel right at home as she listed off the milkshake flavors he might be interested in, and the types of pie. Sometimes his overly youthful face could get him some really good things if he worked it right.

No sooner than he’d ordered when he caught sight of a thin man in a sweater with wild hair and glasses perched primly on his nose entering the cafe. He looked very out of place there, even more when JD heard him speak and it came out in a posh British accent, and he couldn’t help but think this man had to be there for him. No way was this just a tourist, and while JD hadn’t been aware he’d be working with any international operatives, it really wasn’t the biggest surprise considering the dead soldier guy was a special ops hacker who’d been all over the world. 

“Hi!” he stood up and waved at the other man. 

“Ah,” the gentleman nodded and was at JD’s booth in a few quick, measured steps. “Agent Dunne, apologies, have you been waiting long?”

“Nah, I just got here,” JD grinned and shook the offered hand. “I think you’re a little early, actually. I just ordered. Do you want anything, agent...?”

The other man shook his head. “Just Q. The title of agent is reserved for the people who work under me.”

JD’s eyes widened almost comically, not realizing he was going to be here with that level of superior from another branch, especially a man who looked so _young_ . He was older than JD, but probably not by much. Maybe more Vin’s age, possibly Ezra’s if he just had one of those faces that kept him looking young (kind of like JD’s own). He carried himself like he was older anyway, but then again maybe that was due to his job. A guy that young who had to head a law agency of any type probably had to act older all the time if his agents were anything like JD’s own Team 7. The judge was _super_ old and still had to fight to keep his team inline sometimes.

“Agent Dunne, are you alright?” Q asked, shaking JD out of his thoughts.

“Yeah! Sorry. I just, you weren’t really what I was expecting is all. But then I’m probably not what you were expecting either, am I?” There was a slightly hesitant, almost self-deprecating tone to his voice as he prepared himself to be looked down upon like he often was when working with higher ups who took one look at him and wondered how a kid like that could even get himself a badge. 

On the contrary, the Brit’s features only seemed to soften as he relaxed back in the booth seat marginally. “To be perfectly honest, I’m rather relieved. I’d read up on you before arriving, of course, but I couldn’t help but be concerned you might come off as arrogant. I’ve worked with American agencies before and must admit they haven’t been the most pleasant experiences.”

JD laughed at that openly. “You must’ve worked with the FBI. They’re not my favorite people either. Don’t worry, no red tape here. I’m just here to help catch a fugitive.”

“As am I. And I think I will take you up on that offer for a meal. It’s been a long flight and I’m rather famished.”

His grin splitting wider, JD called Aunt Waitress back so she could take an order for his new friend.

~~~~~~~

Rideshare from the airport was...interesting to say the least. The driver went through the terminals picking up Jensen first (who hopped right up front and began immediately regaling the driver with a story about another story that Jensen’s inflight neighbor had told him), and then TomTom from the international terminal, and finally Matt before pulling off back onto the freeway. There had been pleasant greetings as each man slipped into the car, but then very real surprise when they all found out they were headed to the same place. Each one had chosen the cheaper option of ride share assuming any other passengers would be dropped off in Portland well before the two and a half hour ride out to the middle of nowhere.

“Is there like an event or something?” the driver asked in the usual curious, friendly manner that rideshare drivers tended to have when they were trying to fill time while on a long trip. “I don’t get too many people going from the airport straight to Shaniko.”

It was Matt who spoke up first, brushing his long hair away from his eyes as he tugged his laptop out of his bag to balance on his knees. “Oh I’m going for training.”

Jensen smiled back at him from the front seat. “I remember middle of nowhere training. POW escape was the best. One time I buried this guy named Frank up to his neck in a hole. I miss Frank. I wonder what happened to that guy.”

“You remembered to get him _out_ of the hole, didn’t you?” the third passenger, TomTom piped up, smirking around his accent. 

Jensen laughed delightedly at that before his eyes squinted in thought. “You know, now that I think of it, I don’t know if I did? I’m sure somebody found him.” He waved it off and turned to face the front window again. “Seriously, what are you in training for though? Can I ask or is it top secret?”

“I’m just here to see the sites,” TomTom answered over Matt a little too eagerly. That was his cover. English bloke just there to travel around the great United States. Not Tom Tomkins the undercover hacker consultant working his first solo mission ever. It _was_ his first time in the States though, and he absolutely planned on seeing some sites now that he didn’t have a babysitter hovering over him making sure he didn’t break any parole rules. 

Matt’s lips tweaked up in a quick smile at being interrupted, no offense taken as he waited for his turn to address the question that was meant for him. “I’m, uh, kinda new to the FBI thing? I don’t really know what they’re having me do. They didn’t tell me to pack survival clothes or anything. Do you think I should’ve packed for that?”

If it took Jensen an extra beat to answer, he didn’t think anyone noticed. An FBI newbie and a British kid who was obviously lying about his own reasons for going to Shaniko, but as far as Jensen could tell, it didn’t have anything to do with him. It _might_ have to do with a one Napster who was wanted in several countries for multiple thefts, and that was a very good reason to keep his wits about him. Right now he wasn’t a suspect of anything though, so it was best to keep a pleasant cover intact. 

“You don’t pack for survival training,” he chuckled easily. “That kind of defeats the whole idea of living off the lands. I don’t think the FBI does that anyway, especially not for their computer guys.” He nodded at the laptop that Matt’s hands were flying across with a very familiar efficiency. Coders recognized other coders any day.

“Oh! Yeah.” Matt flipped his hair back again and huffed out a small laugh of his own. “Obvious, right? I sort of fit all the stereotypes. Right down to the asthma and the low blood sugar.”

“I’m a computer guy and I don’t have asthma _or_ low blood sugar,” TomTom pointed out, rather pleased with himself for that. He did not, of course, mention that he was of the hacker variety who’d been caught breaking into the wrong system and was serving his parole time working for the police. Better than jail by a long shot, yes, but he was still a slave of the system until he’d done his time. Still better than geeky allergies, he thought. 

Jensen was less amused by the information. In fact, it put him juuuust that much more on edge. What were the odds of two techs going to smalltown, Oregon at the same time if they _weren’t_ looking to potentially catch a world renowned hacker? He should’ve listened to Pooch. This was a bad idea.

~~~~~~~

In the upstairs hallway of the hotel, Riley cursed under his breath as he failed yet again to get his key to work in the door. “Why aren’t there cards like every other hotel ever?” he whined to himself and kicked lightly at the door like a petulant child. He’d been dragged all over the country, all over the _world_ by Ben and this was the first time he’d ever stayed in a hotel that didn’t have card entry. The FBI had sent him to Hell, he was sure of it.

“Trouble?” a British voice called over from a few doors down. 

Riley looked up to see a squat man in a dress shirt and tie, his reddish hair combed over nicely, approaching him. He looked like the type to be in town on a business trip, but what sort of business trip would lead a guy like that to Shaniko? Oh yeah, _Riley_ was there on a business trip. But at least he didn’t dress like it. Out of the office and not trying to sign book deals, Riley Poole refused to be in anything that wasn’t a hoodie, jeans and his Converse. Then again, even _in_ the office he usually still wore his Converse. It wasn’t dress code, but Sadusky was his superior so he could get away with it.

“Uh, yeah,” he answered as he frowned back at the door. “Give me a keycode to crack and I’d have this open in seconds. A real key? I’m all thumbs.”

The Brit chuckled at that lightly. “May I?” He stepped in once Riley backed out of the way and with a little jiggling of the key, his tongue sticking out just slightly at the side of his mouth, he managed to catch the latch on the inside. “Sometimes the tumblers don’t fall quite back into place properly on these old doors. Make sure you turn it all the way when locking and unlocking and it should be fine.”

“My hero,” Riley grinned as he took the key back. “I’m Riley.”

“Benji,” the man answered brightly and shook Riley’s hand. “You look vaguely familiar, have we met before?”

Riley’s eyes lit up at that and he couldn’t hide the way his grin widened. “No, but you’ve probably seen my face. Riley Poole, treasure—”

“That’s where I know you!” Benji snapped his fingers. “You hacked Buckingham Palace.”

And the smile fell like a brick off Riley’s face. “No one could prove that.”

“And you were party to kidnapping the President.”

Riley quickly shook his head. “No. What? I’m friends with the President. Ask him. He saved my car.”

“And you stole the Declaration of Indepence.”

“We _protected_ the Declaration, thank you very much. Who are you again?”

Benji simply laughed and shook his head, placing his hands squarely on his hips. “Riley bloody Poole. I can’t believe it. And here of all places. You must be working a case, I presume? I’m here to consult on one as well. I wonder if we’re both working the same one…”

“Nah.” Riley waved it off, relaxing somewhat once he realized he wasn’t actually under fire, but still a little peeved that he seemed to be known for his crimes more than all the cool treasure discovering stuff. “Just some training. Or punishment. I’m not really sure anymore. The door has a keyhole.”

“The door has a keyhole,” Benji repeated with a chuckle. “Well if you need any more help with it I’m just two rooms down. I’ve been trained to get through keypads _and_ keyholes, even without the key.”

Riley nodded and tilted his head slightly. “Uh-huh. Who do you consult for again?”

“It’s classified.” Benji winked at him and strolled away towards his own room, leaving Riley more curious than ever. No one knew about Buckingham Palace, so whoever this Benji guy was, he was good. Good in a friend way or in a someone’s-going-to-put-a-gun-to-my-head kind of way was still up in the air at that point. Riley wouldn’t be surprised if it was the latter. People _always_ put guns to his head whenever he found himself out in the middle of nowhere.

“I’m being punished,” he sighed under his breath as he made his way into his room and prayed for a quiet weekend.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An introduction to our villains, and a thickening of the plot.

Ginger Knowles smiled at her last guest before making her way back into the little hotel office behind the desk, a room far more technologically advanced than an antique town like Shaniko should’ve been able to handle. It hadn’t been there before her arrival a few months ago, of course, and would stand out like a sore thumb if any of the few remaining original residents of the town discovered it, but it wasn’t something Gabriel’s team worried about. They’d purchased the hotel from the original owners fair and square, sending them on their way out of town quite wealthy before replacing any of the few staff members with people of their own. People could be bought so easily, especially ones who lived in poor, shitty little towns in the middle of Oregon.

Most of the forty odd people who called Shaniko home had been sent away for a while on paid vacations thinking their town was going to be upgraded a little to attract more tourists. The few who refused to leave lived on the outskirts where they wouldn’t be much of a problem anyway, but Gabe had put some people on them just in case any of them started getting suspicious of anything. Phones were bugged and cameras installed, but so far it seemed the stubborn ones were more interested in keeping to their solitary selves than digging into what was going on in town. Ginger hoped they stayed that way; as much as she didn’t mind killing terrorists or people who got in the way of their mission, she couldn’t help but think shooting these people would be like putting down harmless stray dogs. They lived out there to escape the horrors of humanity after all; it wasn’t their fault Gabe and his crew had invaded their lives.

Gabe wasn’t actually going by that name here, of course. The townspeople who’d been paid out and the ones left remaining all knew him as Michael Gaumond, but he’d been Gabriel Shear for so long that he still went by Gabe behind the scenes. His birth name was something even Ginger didn’t know, but then she never gave him her real name either and they preferred it stayed that way. The criminal mastermind and the beautiful con artist made a good team, had been one since she was barely legal, and they trusted each other enough to not give a shit about who they were before they’d found one another. They were loyal only to each other, the rest of the world be damned.

“Everyone’s here,” she alerted with professional efficiency into her earpiece once she’d sat down at her desk to watch the cameras. She could see most of the town and its few businesses on all screens, but unfortunately she couldn’t keep tabs on what the hackers who were in their rooms were doing visually. Installing cams or bugs in the hotel rooms was too risky considering most of their guests were either experienced or just plain paranoid enough to look for such things as soon as they checked in. What she  _ did _ have were people stationed around with satellite listening devices so they could hopefully catch any future conversation happening behind closed doors once things really got underway, but for the moment everyone was busy getting settled in.

“Any red flags yet?” Gabe’s smooth voice came back to her from his station in the large trailer outside of town. He’d be putting up the roadblocks soon to keep any other tourists from heading into the area, the ones who’d passed through earlier already warned that they’d have to be gone before nightfall as Shaniko would be shutting down for the weekend for construction. Once the area was cleared of as many civilians as possible, Gabe and his team would be ready to begin phase two of their plan.

“Flirty, mostly,” Ginger grinned. “Really awkward flirty. Most of these guys are  _ not _ the chic geek type. They’re short, too. I’m actually taller than that Lyle guy even without my heels.”

Gabe’s warm chuckle filtered into her ear. “They’re the status quo for their type.”

“Stanley wasn’t like this.”

“Stanley set the bar too high.” She could hear the grin on Gabe’s lips, something that had developed over time once he’d gotten over being angry at how Stanley had betrayed him. Somehow it had morphed into an almost proud sort of respect over how their previous hacker had become the one person in Gabe’s life who had almost bested him, and one of the few people Gabe wanted who he couldn’t find. It was almost a fun pastime for Gabe now, trying to find clues to Stanley’s whereabouts, but that game was set on hold for the time being while they worked this new mission. What they were doing now was bigger than anything they’d ever attempted before, and far riskier, so they couldn’t afford to be distracted. 

“This Jake Jensen guy’s alright,” she hummed, looking appreciatively over the soldier’s file again. “More than alright. He was the only one who seemed a little edgy when he came in, though. Rode in the same car as Farrell and Tomkins.”

“Nothing to worry about. They’re all going to get very acquainted soon anyway.”

Ginger hummed again as she scanned over the cameras. “Maybe a little sooner than you think. A few of them are coming back out, and I think Q and Dunne have figured out their targets don’t line up. They’re looking  _ pretty _ confused right now.”

“Sending in Ericks then,” Gabe fired back, his tone shifting back into business mode.

“Copy that.”

She sat back to watch, ready for the games to begin.

~~~~~~~

“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid you’ve completely lost me,” Q blinked as JD wrapped up what little he knew about a man named Jake Jensen.

They’d been having a pleasant lunch before that, getting to know one another a little better and commenting on the food and the little hovel they’d found themselves in before shifting into business talk. The young agent had been eager to share his findings then, leaving Q in an uncomfortable state of disorientation as he tried to follow the conversation. At first he thought perhaps this soldier was some sort of lead to the Quartermaster’s target, but when Dunne wrapped up, he realized this had nothing to do with MI6’s case.

JD flushed a bit with seeming embarrassment and rushed to explain. “Sorry, your guys didn’t send his name until I was on the plane already. That was all the information I could dig up on him on short notice. Once I get settled though I promise I can get a lot more!”

Q shook his head. “No, no. What I mean is I don’t understand what this man has to do with my case. Does he have any connection to a one Damien Burke?”

The sudden confusion that crossed JD’s face was so heavy it might've been comical if Q didn’t believe it was a look that most likely matched his own. “Damien Burke? Who’s that?”

With just those few words, every hair on the back of Q’s neck began to stand, the understanding that he and M had been duped smacking him with the force of a sledgehammer to the face. They had been so careful in checking their sources, all the communications with Denver’s ATF branch seeming to check out, and yet here he was half a world away from home and discovering it had all been a trick. “Who are you really?” he asked of the young man across the table.

“Who are  _ you _ really?” Dunne shot back, all suspicion now and former cordiality gone. “I was told I was here to help catch Jake Jensen. I don't know anything about a Damien Burke.”

“And I was told Damien Burke had evaded capture from you and yours on Team 7, and that you would be assisting me in tracking him down here.” Q pulled up a few photos of the man in question on his tablet. “Does this man look familiar to you?”

JD looked closer and then shook his head. “We’ve lost a few criminals here and there, but that’s not one of ‘em. What’s going on here?”

Before they could discuss any further, the clearing of a throat interrupted the conversation and they looked up to see an unassuming man standing at their table. He looked like he could’ve been one of the tourists in a black tee covered by a mildly dusty denim jacket, faded jeans, a bit of stubble on his face and mildly thinning hair slicked back off his head, the type of guy who was probably ruggedly handsome as a boy but who’d refined a bit as he reached middle aged.

“Apologies, gentlemen, allow me to clear things up for you. May I?”

The man gestured at the table and while Q eyed him with distrust, JD did shift over a little bit to give him room on the bench, but remained rigid and alert as he also tried to gauge what was going on.

“Agent Ericks,” the man continued with a warm, disarming smile that Q continued not to fall for. He’d seen Bond use that smile on enough marks to not be so easily fooled by it, and by the look on JD’s face, the younger man wasn’t biting either. “CIA. I take full responsibility for the deceit, but if you’ll allow me to explain, you’ll understand the delicacy of the situation we’re dealing with.”

“Badge?” Dunne was quick to ask for, and Ericks was quick to hand it over. After JD inspected it, he handed it over to Q who began immediately looking up the badge number in the CIA database. When the number and face came up matching in the system, Q nodded and handed it back to him. It appeared clear now, but he would save the information so he could do some further digging into this Agent Ericks once he was in a better position to do so.

“Explain,” he merely bit out sharply, no longer in the mood for pleasantries. He hated it when people weren’t honest with him, no matter the reason.

“I first want to assure you that your cases are, in fact, one in the same,” the CIA man began. He was clearly American with no discerning regional accent, but the proper way in which he formed his sentences seemed unusual. Q couldn’t help but wonder if he was disguising an accent or speaking so formally to make himself appear more educated. Or perhaps he  _ was _ just highly educated. Regardless, it sounded unnatural off his tongue in comparison to the way he was dressed.

Ericks pulled out his phone and set it on the table to reveal some photos of his own. “This is the man we’re actually after, one of ours before he went rogue, a man with ties both to your Jake Jensen and to your Damien Burke.” He nodded to JD and Q in kind. “And just about any other terrorist cell in known existence. He relishes in supplying technology and weaponry to all of them, his chief goal seeming to be inciting war among anyone willing to fight one. Agent Dunne, he’s been a supplier to a number of the organizations you and yours have taken down, and not taken down; and for you, Quartermaster, he was the one responsible for Burke’s extraction. You’d been tailing Burke as a possible Spectre contact, had you not?”

Q blinked at this information, knowing it was supposed to be highly classified. Not many outside of the British government knew about Spectre, and the fact that this man did meant the situation was clearly more complicated than he thought. He looked down at the man in the photos, his intrigue piqued a little more now. “What’s this man’s name?” he couldn’t help but ask.

“Max. Only Max,” the agent answered. “He went off the grid a few years ago. The only time anyone’s come close to catching him was back when Colonel Clay and his team, including Corporal Jensen, returned from the dead. They lost him in LA when one of their own turned on them.”

He flipped to more photos of the man they recognized as Jensen in various parts of the country, the same four individuals often appearing with him. The pictures were always at a distance and often blurred, clearly shots snagged from security cameras or in the background of someone’s cell shot, ones that only would’ve been discovered via a thorough scan of the world’s systems with facial recognition software.

“Okay…” JD’s brow was scrunched in thought as he, too, looked at the pictures. “This still doesn’t tell us much. What are we here for?”

“You’re here to make contact with Jensen, just as we asked,” Ericks told him and then turned to Q. “And you’re here to track down Burke, just as you were told. Surveillance did pick up Jensen in the area who, from what little intel we’ve gathered, has also been tailing Burke in hopes of leading him back to Max.”

Q’s face remained stoney as he digested the information and rolled it around in his head. “And the CIA can’t make contact with Corporal Jensen itself?”

Ericks frowned, a definite flash of frustration crossing his eyes for a moment. “No. Sadly to say, Jake Jensen’s skill levels are above anyone’s we’ve tried to throw at him. You gentlemen have to understand that Clay and his men were special operatives working under a CIA handler who set them up to die in a helicopter explosion. They were labeled as war criminals and buried without honors in the eyes of the public and their families. They don’t trust us, and for good reason.”

JD shook his head. “Why don’t you just go to the press and clear their names and ask ‘em to help catch this Max guy if they’re really innocent?”

“Because…” Ericks sighed and ran a hand back through his hair. “Full discretion, gentleman, not everyone in the CIA is onboard with this or even knows what we’re doing here. They don’t like the idea of one of ours being a terrorist. As far as they’re concerned, Max is the one who’s innocent and he’s in hiding knowing that Clay and his team are after him on a vendetta. Agent Dunne, I know you’re more than familiar with agencies preferring to throw their own people under a bus in order to protect their good name.”

Q watched as JD frowned at that last part and nodded. “One of the guys on my team, Ezra, he used to work for the FBI. We picked him up after they accused him of a whole bunch of stuff that wasn’t true just ‘cause they needed someone to take a fall,” he explained to Q briefly before turning back to Ericks. “So Jensen and his people are in the same boat. You really think he’ll talk to me since I kinda get where he’s comin’ from?”

Ericks shrugged his shoulders. “Possibly, but more importantly we need you to tap into what he’s doing. There are very few hackers in the world who are as good as what the two of you can do. If you can get into his systems, you can see what he has on Burke, and hopefully that’ll help lead us closer to Max. Then, gentlemen, hopefully a great many issues of all of ours will be resolved.”

Q and JD looked at one another for a long moment before Q spoke for the both of them. “Don’t take this as rude, but this is all rather sudden. If you don’t mind, I’d like some time to check all of this over before I agree to anything. I’m sure our young Mr. Dunne would agree?”

JD was nodding as Q was speaking. “Yeah, no offense, mister.”

“None taken, I wouldn’t expect anything less,” the man smiled. “I’ll send over any files I have on all parties involved. Q, I’m sure Agent Dunne wouldn’t mind some more information on Damien Burke as well, if he decides to help us on this. And please, I assume I don’t have to remind you that discretion is appreciated. If anyone in the CIA outside of my own team catches wind of what we’re doing here, they’ll come in and arrest Jensen immediately, and I’ll be disavowed. This has to stay under wraps until either Max is in custody or I can present some undeniably solid proof that he’s the mastermind behind everything.”

“Understood,” Q nodded sharply. “Agent Dunne, feel free to join me in my quarters so we can further discuss all of this in private.” He stood up and nodded at Ericks in a gesture to end the conversation, prompting the man to move out of his seat so JD could slide out and follow the Quartermaster back to his room.

“Before I left home, Ezra said something didn’t feel right about all this,” the young man whispered to Q as they headed down the hotel hallway on the first floor.

“One of my agents had his doubts as well,” Q sighed back. “If this proves to be legitimate however, unorthodox as it may seem, we’ll have no choice but to stay and assist. Burke is a very dangerous man, and if he’s answering to this Max character, we must assume that makes Max an even greater danger who needs to be stopped.”

Q led JD to his door but before he could open it, a voice called out to them. “‘ey! You’re him! You’re—sorry.” A young man in plaids and a hoodie covered up by a brown leather jacket scurried over after exiting his own room at the hotel, bright smile on his face as he stuck his hand out towards Q. “Thomas Tomkins, but everyone just calls me TomTom.”

Q startled momentarily as the name lined up to a face in his memory. Part of his job at Q Branch was to keep an eye out for any promising hackers who might be recruited into the MI6 conglomerate, and Tomkins had been on the radar for a time. But then he’d gotten caught transferring funds out of a businessman’s account—a rather unsavory man who’d been found to be corrupt later on, but still, theft was theft in the eyes of the law, and Tomkins had been caught rather red-handed, even if his intentions were good. Q was glad to learn he’d been offered to serve out his sentence in a discreet program that utilized his skills to capture criminals instead of being one himself, which meant once his time was complete he could still find himself a home in MI6. For now though, he was supposed to be in London aiding the police. So what was he doing here?

“You sent for me?” the man in question asked, dropping his hand and looking very unsure of himself now. “To help on a case? You are the Quartermaster of MI6, aren’t you?”

“Bullocks,” Q sighed and looked at JD. “I believe Ericks failed to clue us in on some more key information. Come with me, TomTom, I’ll explain everything.”

With that, he guided the man into his room with JD where they quickly checked for bugs before filling one another in on how they came to be in Shaniko and what they knew of their current situation. 

And outside, a man pointed his dish at Q’s room so that Ginger could listen in on everything. Everything so far was going exactly to plan.


End file.
